PLAYBACK OST- To converge or not to converge

[Chris Weaver]

Diane,

Your posting is so clear and comprehensive.  Thank you!!  You inspire me to
add sticky-dots, even for this group of 13.

At the moment I am thinking:
3:15 "afternoon news"
3:45ish - Sticky-dot the original agenda topics
silent reflection
write individual commitments
Once-around to read these aloud
4:30 - meet with whomever you wish to meet with to discuss action steps
5:10 - closing circle

I'm still open to feedback, and I look forward to sharing the story of this
convervence on the list next week.

Chris

ps - Diane, would you be willing to post your convergence message on the
Meta Network?  I bet many people would benefit later from easy access to
your thoughts.

----------
>From: Diane Gibeault <dgp at cyberus.ca>
>To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
>Subject: [OSLIST] PLAYBACK OST- To converge or not to converge
>Date: Tue, Jan 30, 2001, 6:14 PM
>

> Hi Chris,
>
> This is always a good topic to revisit. Convergence seems to me to be a
> very important part of any transformational process. OS and other group
> interventions for that matter are generally done with the intent or hope
> that some form of change to the present state will occur.
>
> The closing circle and convergence are two complementary but different
> levels of closure to the exploration created by OS. Convergence provides
> a focus, a concrete stepping stone for the future. Some groups who had
> experienced OS without convergence told me that they felt they ended
> with a long shopping list and no way to answer collectively their
> question "What now?"
>
> The group may really just want for that given meeting to explore but I
> always try to incorporate a way of doing some minimal convergence, even
> at an individual basis (people writing an interest / commitment down for
> themselves).
>
> I agree with being flexible to people's energy at the end. I also think
> it is important to announce to participants at the outset that some form
> of convergence is planned as this can affect their discussions.
>
> I find that the two examples of convergence you described ("twice around
> the circle" and "writing then grouping individual commitments for
> planning") are very interesting and give you that flexibility of
> choosing what fits best at the moment. It would work well with
> relatively small groups, maybe less with large groups -time and numbers
> at the wall if all post a commitment, then regrouping by topic.
>
> In addition to these individual commitments, I feel it is also important
> to have a picture of the collective reading of what the top hot issues
> to act on are for the group or organization. Clients have been very
> interested also. This is information that comes at a level which is
> different from the personal commitment about a given issue. A people
> may not have the possibility to commit themselves to more than one issue
> but may want to share with the group their perception of what else they
> feel is important. That collective view is a very different and useful
> piece of information for the group or organization.
>
> That is why I like to invite people as they read the discussion reports
> or reflect on the day to identify what they feel "with passion" are the
> top 3 or 5 top issues for themselves and the organization. A quick way
> of getting that picture is the old sticky dot or check mark on the topic
> issues on the wall. If new issues or different formulation of issues
> need to be added, participants post theme to the wall at that time.
> There is rarely a bottleneck of people voting at the wall since everyone
> does it at their own rhythm during the reading period. Then a quick
> glance usually tells you what the top ones are and if desired, a quick
> count of dots on those gives you more precisely their hierarchy of
> importance.
>
> Then, to action plan on collective issues and on people's personal
> passion you could use one of the two approaches you described or
> Harrison's approach which goes roughly like this: people can regroup
> under the top 5 - or more-  issues or any other if they care to, so they
> can note related issues, share their thoughts on next steps, and
> communicate their individual commitments. Consistent with OS principles,
> people can go to more than one issue group if they so wish.
>
> I always enjoy exchanges on convergence because I always discover new
> options on how to converge while being flexible with the group's energy
> and needs.
>
> Thanks for bringing it up.
>
> Diane Gibeault
>
>
>
>
>
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